Fairy Tail: Rise of the Water Dragon!
by Kilvakar
Summary: A new group of wizards joins the mighty Fairy Tail guild, among them is a new Dragon Slayer! Their courage, their skills, and their newly-formed bonds of friendship will be tested as they face the challenges ahead...but don't worry, Team Natsu doesn't loose the spotlight! Pairings are OCxLaki, GreyxJuvia, GajeelxLevy, and maybe others. Starts just after the Fighting Festival Arc.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: Welcome to Fairy Tail!**

**Hello Fairy Tail fans! This is my first Fairy Tail fanfiction, and I hope you all find it enjoyable. The story starts just after the Fighting Festival arc. There are plenty of OCs in this story, but I intend for them to add to Fairy Tail, not hog the spotlight. Other than my own OCs (which will be introduced later), I own nothing to do with Fairy Tail whatsoever. I'm working on two stories right now, so I intend to switch between each tale when it comes to updating. Please R&R, I want to know how I'm doing! :)**

_**In a land far, far away lies the kingdom of Fiore, a small, peaceful nation of seventeen million, and a place filled with magic. Found in every home, bought and sold in every marketplace, for most, magic is merely a tool, a mundane part of everyday life. For some, however, magic is an art, and they have devoted their lives to its practice. These are the wizards. Banded together into magical guilds, they apply their skills in search of fame and fortune. Many such guilds dot the landscape of Fiore, but there is a certain guild in a certain town that soars high above the rest, one from which countless legends have been born. A guild that will no doubt continue to create legends well into the future. Its name...is Fairy Tail.**_

_ On this particular day, as the members of Fairy Tail rest and recover from their recent battles, Lucy Heartfilia is desperate to find a job that will cover her rent for that month. Little does she know that the job she chooses will set her and her friends on one of their most exciting and dangerous adventures yet..._

Lucy sighed in resignation as what started out as a typical day in Fairy Tail turned into a _very_ typical day in Fairy Tail. As usual, Natsu and Grey were arguing over something (which was probably nothing), and a brawl had ensued. Given the rowdy nature of most of the guild members, others quickly joined in the ruckus, until it was hard to see who was fighting who. To avoid getting caught up in the mayhem, Lucy had found what she assumed would be a safe spot sitting at the bar over by Mirajane, who was observing the chaos with her usual ever-smiling calm. Lucy looked up at her friend in exasperation.

"Don't these guys every get tired of fighting? Seriously, didn't they get enough of that while Laxus was trying to take over the guild?"

"Well," Mira replied, "this is just their way of letting off steam. I think it's good to see everything getting back to normal so quickly after what happened."

"I'm not sure that's such a good thing, we just finished repairing the guild hall after the damage Natsu, Gajeel and Laxus did to it..." Lucy replied with a sweat drop.

"Well, at least they're holding back on using magic." Said Mira. "As long as Natsu avoids using his Dragon Slayer magic, we shouldn't have anything to worry about."

Just then, as if on cue, Natsu's voice boomed out over the sounds of brawling.

"Fire Dragon Iron Fist!"

"You were saying?" Lucy retorted. The celestial wizard sighed again. _"Sheesh, can't Natsu keep a cool head for five minutes?"_ She thought as several of her guildmates were sent flying by Natsu's attack.

"What's wrong?" asked Mira. "You seem a little down today Lucy, is everything ok?"

Lucy slumped against the bar counter, her face the picture of comic misery.

"My rent's almost due, and I don't have any money!" she cried. "I was banking on winning the Miss Fairy Tail contest, and I would've been set for months if I'd gotten the prize money, but I came in second and then Laxus tried to take over the guild, and then we had the Fantasia Parade, so I haven't been on any jobs lately and I need to earn some money really bad!"

"Well, why don't you take a look at the job request board and see what's available?"

"I already did, there's nothing that I could do on my own that would earn enough to pay my rent."

"Then why don't you ask the rest of your team?"

Lucy sweat dropped again. "I would, but in case you didn't notice they're a little busy right now."

"Erza doesn't look too busy right now."

Lucy looked in the direction Mirajane was looking, she hadn't seen Erza earlier, but now the fabled Titania was standing at the foot of the stairs, apparently having just come down from the second floor. Lucy couldn't help but cringe a little when she saw the frightening expression of anger on Erza's face, and she knew what was coming next. Erza moved over to the top of the smaller set of stairs that went down into the restaurant table area, which was where the majority of the melee was taking place. Her voice boomed out across the guild hall:

"Everyone, THAT'S ENOUGH!"

Immediately the entire guild fell silent as the rest of Fairy Tail froze in place. All except, that is, for Natsu, who grinned gleefully at the S-Class wizard.

"There you are, Erza!" the Fire Dragon Slayer shouted. "Fight me!"

Natsu rushed toward Erza with both fists blazing, but Erza simply struck out with a backhand, sending Natsu spinning through the air until a table broke his fall. Erza glared at the rest of her guild mates as she addressed them.

"Anyone else have something to say?"

"We're sorry Erza!" Nearly the whole guild called out all at once.

"This is no time for brawling! Now, clean this place up before Master Makarov gets back!" Erza demanded sternly.

Immediately everyone began putting cleaning up the mess and putting things back together. No one wanted to challenge the mighty Erza. No one except Natsu, who was too dazed at the moment to do anything. Erza walked over towards Lucy and Mirajane, and her demeanor changed instantly. She greeted her two friends warmly as she took a seat next to Lucy.

"Well good morning Lucy, Mira. How are the two of you doing today?"

Lucy was still a bit nervous after Erza's show of righteous anger a moment ago, but Mira smiled at her friend and fellow S-Class wizard and cheerfully replied.

"I'm doing fine, thanks Erza. Lucy was just getting ready to ask you about a job."

"I was not!" Lucy retorted.

"Well, I think that sounds like a great idea." Erza replied, totally ignoring Lucy's previous comment. "Which job were you thinking of taking?"

Without waiting for an answer, Erza got up and walked over to the job request board. Lucy followed along, still too scared to interrupt. Erza looked over some of the jobs that were available, then pointed to one of the may pieces of paper that represented an available job.

"How about this one?" she asked. "It says; _"Experienced Wizard Needed for Magical Demonstration at an Onibus Town School. Reward: 50,000 Jewels."_

"No, not that one." Lucy answered. "That one doesn't pay enough money."

"Really?" Erza replied. "So you're in need of a lot of money right now?"

"Yeah, my rent is due and I haven't been on any good jobs lately. I need to make at least 70,000 jewels or I'm gonna be in trouble."

Suddenly, Natsu appeared seemingly out of nowhere next to Lucy.

"Well that's no good! If you loose your place, where will Happy and I crash?" The young Dragon Slayer interjected.

"Really!? That's what you're thinking?"

"Hey! How about this one?" Natsu said grabbing a flyer from the board. Happy floated up over his shoulder.

"Wow, what's that one say Natsu?" the blue cat inquired.

Lucy nearly fainted when she saw the job request they were looking at. There was a picture of ferocious-looking sea monster towering over a small fishing boat. Natsu read the job request information aloud.

"It says; _"Please Save Our Village! A Horrible Monster is Chasing Our Fishing Boats Away and Eating all the Fish! Reward: 200,000 Jewels."_

"That's horrible!" cried Happy. "We have to save the fish!"

"I'd sure love to fight a giant sea monster!" said Natsu, the hunger for battle already gleaming in his eyes.

"Aren't you concerned at all about the village?" asked Lucy.

"Maybe the sea monster is a giant fish! After we beat it, then we can EAT IT!"

"Oh yeah! Good idea, Happy! Nothing beats a good meal after a great fight!"

"Uh, guys? I'm not sure that's the type of job I was hoping to go on..."

Erza struck her armored fist to her palm.

"It's settled then, we leave tomorrow morning!"

"Where are we heading exactly?" asked Grey Fullbuster, who had seen the rest of his team talking and decided to find out what they were up to.

"Monster hunt!" Natsu and Happy shouted in unison.

"Sounds exciting, I'm in."

"Grey," Lucy interjected. "Your clothes..."

"Gaah! When did that happen?" yelled an embarrassed Grey, who was standing in only his boxers.

"You came over here like that." Happy informed the Ice Make wizard.

"Damn it!" Grey growled as he went to look for his shirt and pants.

"Well then," said Erza. "I suggest everyone get some rest tonight. I'll see you all here first thing tomorrow morning."

"Alright!" shouted Natsu. "I'm getting fired up already!"

"Aye sir!"

"Where the heck are my pants?"

Lucy sighed with resignation.

_"What have I gotten myself into this time?"_ she thought.

**Next Time: Monster Hunt!**

**All right! My first Fairy Tail fanfic chapter ever! Hope you all liked it! Please let me know how I'm doing, especially when it comes to the characters and their personalities. **


	2. Chapter 2: Monster Hunt!

**Chapter 2: Monster Hunt!**

**Well, no reviews yet, but the first chapter was your basic day at Fairy Tail, so I'm sure there are hundreds of stories like it out there. I went ahead and rolled out the second chapter while it was still fresh in my mind, so here it is! **

**As always, I don't own Fairy Tail (why do we have to put up disclaimers in FANfictions anyway? lol!)**

_On this bright and sunny morning, Natsu Dragneel and his flying cat friend Happy are eagerly awaiting the arrival of the rest of their team at the Fairy Tail guild hall. After hearing that Lucy is desperate to make her monthly rent payment, Team Natsu has decided to take on a job hunting down a fearsome sea monster. Natsu is nearly beside himself with excitement..._

"Ahh, come on!" growled Natsu as he paced back and forth in front of the bar in the guild hall. "How long before everyone gets here?"

"You just said that a minute ago!" Happy replied.

"Well, Erza said that we were meeting up first thing in the morning, and it's morning, so where is everyone?"

"Take it easy Natsu, no need to be so impatient." said Grey as he walked up to the bar.

"Who are you calling impatient, you popsicle?"

"Obviously you're the only one standing here, dragon breath!"

"Mira's here too, so technically you could be calling her impatient, right?" Happy interjected.

Both Natsu and Grey looked over at Mirajane, who was standing behind the bar counter, smiling brightly as usual.

"You sure seem excited about this job, Natsu. Which one did you decide on?" Mira asked.

"The one with the sea monster! It's been a while since I got to beat up something big and dangerous, and it pays 200,000 jewels."

"You know," said Grey, "if Lucy takes 70,000 jewels, that leaves 130,000. And if we split that between you, Erza and I, that only leaves about 43,000 for each of us."

"Aw, I don't care about the money. Happy and I already decided that Lucy can have our share."

"That's so sweet of you, Natsu, taking care of Lucy like that." said Mira.

Just then, Elfman popped up seemingly out of nowhere.

"That's because Natsu's a real man!" he exclaimed as he patted Natsu on the back.

"Oooh, you liiiiiike her!" teased Happy as he floated up behind Natsu's head.

"Shut up, cat!" yelled Natsu.

Just then, the guild hall main door opened up, and Erza Scarlet walked in, causing Natsu, Grey and Happy all to go silent. She was wearing her usual Heart Kruez armor, and towing a huge cart full of luggage. She looked over and noticed Natsu and Grey already waiting for her, so she walked over towards the bar to greet them.

"Good morning Natsu, good morning Grey. How are the two of you this morning?"

Natsu and Grey put on their best fake grins and answered in unison.

"We're fine, thank you ma'am!'"

"Very good. Now that everyone's here, we should head out immediately. If we take the morning train to Hargeon we should be able to catch a boat to the village and be there before dark."

"But Erza," Happy chimed in. "Everyone's not here."

"Hey that's right, where's Lucy?" asked Natsu.

Erza looked confused. "She was supposed to be here already, I distinctly remember telling her to be here by 7:30 in the morning, and it's already 8:00."

"She's probably sleeping in, knowing her." Happy suggested.

Grey scratched the back of his head as he questioned aloud; "Doesn't anyone else get the feeling that Lucy's probably the only one that isn't excited about this job?"

"Nonsense." Erza replied. "She's the one who picked out this job in the first place."

"Actually, I think that was Natsu." Happy pointed out.

Erza held her fist to her chin in thought. "Well, I suppose we should check her house and make sure she's ok."

Just then, the guild hall door burst open and Lucy rushed in, panting from exhaustion. She looked like she had run the whole way from her apartment to the guild.

"There you are, Lucy." said Erza. "We were just about to come looking for you."

"Whew!" Lucy panted as she tried to catch her breath. "Sorry I'm late!"

"What happened? You look exhausted." Grey asked.

"Yeah, you look like something the cat dragged in!" Natsu added.

"I don't think I could drag Lucy all the way here from her house, she's too heavy!" Happy exclaimed.

"Who are you calling heavy, cat!?" Lucy shot back. Then she turned back to the others and began to explain. "I got up early, just like we planned, and got everything ready. Then, while I was walking by the canal on my way here, I slipped and fell in."

"See, people keep telling you not to walk on the edge of the canal like that." said Grey.

"I was not walking on the edge!"

"I bet you were!" Natsu teased.

"Ok, so maybe I was." Lucy sighed. "But either way, I was soaking wet and I had to go back home to dry off and change clothes and then I realized I was running late so I raced all the way back here."

"I see." said Erza stoically. "That sounds like quite a morning ordeal. But we need to get moving now if we're going to catch the train to Hargeon."

"What! We have to take the train!?" Natsu exclaimed. "Isn't there another way to get there?" 

"No there isn't." was Erza's response. "And besides, I already told you we were taking the train to Hargeon, and then a boat to the village."

"Aw, a train _and _a boat? This trip is gonna suck!"

"We have to hurry, or else we'll miss the train and have to wait till tomorrow!" Erza demanded.

"But I'm to tired to run!" Lucy whined.

"That's ok," Natsu replied. "Happy'll fly you the station!"

"Hey! Why do I have to do all the heavy lifting?"

"Watch it with the heavy comments, furball!"

"That's enough, both of you!" Erza interjected. "We've got to go now!"

And so Team Natsu dashed out of the guild hall. Grey struggling to put the shirt and jacket back on that he'd taken off during their conversation, Natsu spouting flames in excitement, Erza leading the way with her usual determination, and Happy complaining as he carried Lucy through the air. Fortunately, Lucy was too out of breath to retaliate.

_**One Train and Boat Ride Later:**_

Team Natsu walked down the gangplank and onto the dock. Erza and Lucy waved at the boat's captain and crew as they prepared to shove off. Grey was holding up Natsu, who was still trying to shake off the effects of his ever-present motion sickness. The village itself was made up of little more than small wooden houses scattered across the shoreline, and the smell of fish permeated the entire area. Happy took in a deep breath, and started drooling.

"Wow! This place smells so good!"

Lucy, on the other hand, was holding her nose. "Eww, you actually like that smell?"

"Of course, I bet this is what heaven smells like!" Happy replied, his face a picture of total bliss.

"If this is what heaven smells like, I can't even imagine what hell is like." said Lucy sarcastically.

Happy darted from building to building in excitement, but then returned with a look of disappointment on his face. "Where's all the fish?" he asked.

The group looked around and noticed that Happy indeed had a point. While the entire village was clearly a fishing town, there were no fish to be seen. In addition, the town seemed surprisingly empty. Over a dozen fishing boats were docked at the pier, but nobody was working there. Also, no one appeared to be working in the village itself. The whole place seemed empty except for a few birds, some young children playing in the streets, and a small wooden sign saying "welcome to Cocoplum Village."

Natsu, who was recovering from his motion sickness, looked around in confusion. "Hey, you're right Happy, doesn't look like anyone's doing any fishing here. In fact, shouldn't someone be meeting us here to tell us about the job?"

"Yeah, kinda strange, don't you think?" said Grey.

Lucy looked back and forth across the nearly-empty village, but then she noticed someone coming out of one of the houses. "Look!" she called out. "There's someone right now!"

Everyone turned to see where Lucy was pointing. A suntanned man wearing loose pants and a vest but no shirt was walking out from one of the houses. He turned and saw the five friends standing at the docks and immediately rushed toward them.

"Hey! Hello there!" the man called out as he ran. "You four look like wizards, are you the ones who answered our job request?"

"That's us!" Natsu replied, giving the man the thumbs up.

"Oh, thank goodness! I'm sorry I didn't meet you at the docks, I wasn't sure when you'd be arriving. My name is Elias, and I'm the head fisherman of Cocoplum Village."

"Pleased to meet you, Elias." Erza answered.

"Why is the town so empty?" Lucy asked. Then she gasped as the thought occurred to her. "That sea monster isn't...eating people, is it!?"

"What!? No! And thank goodness, too. Most of the men and women have been forced to look for work in Hargeon since that monster started eating all our fish! There's only the village elders left here right now, and the children who are too young to be at school. And me, of course. I'm the Head Fisherman of Cocoplum Village."

"That's awful!" cried Happy. "A fishing town with no fish. Come on, Natsu! Let's go teach that monster a lesson!"

"Sounds like a plan!" the Fire Dragon Slayer replied with a toothy grin. "I'm all fired up and ready to go!"

Grey just shook his head at Natsu's usual impetuousness. "Shouldn't we try to find out a little more about this monster first? Like, where to find it, for example?"

"Oh, that beast appears in the same part of the sea every time." Elias explained. "If you sail straight east from here, about four leagues, you'll find yourself in the monster's territory."

"Why does it only appear there?" asked Erza.

"We don't know, it's probably protecting it's lair. Or maybe it's a mother guarding her evil brood of hatchlings, before they swarm out and spread across the seas!"

"There's no need to be too dramatic." said Grey.

"Sorry," Elias replied with embarrassment. "Sometimes I just get a little carried away."

"If the monster only appears in that part of the ocean, why don't you just fish somewhere else?" asked Erza.

"That's where we catch all the biggest fish." said Elias with an exaggerated look of depression. "We supply most of the seafood for this part of Fiore, if we don't start bringing in the big catches again soon, this whole village will be nothing more than a ghost town!"

Lucy patted Elias on the shoulder. "Don't worry," she said. "We're Fairy Tail's strongest team! We'll take care of that sea monster and save your village!"

"That's right!" said Natsu.

"Aye sir!" Happy shouted.

"Just point us in the right direction and we'll do the rest." said Grey.

"We'll need to borrow one of your boats." Erza added.

"Probably a big one..." said Lucy as she looked at Erza's enormous cart of luggage.

"That won't be a problem." Elias replied. "You can use the biggest boat in our fishing fleet. I'll help you load up right now!"

And so Team Natsu loaded up on the fishing boat and set sail eastward toward what would be one of their biggest adventures yet!"

**Next Time: Here There Be Dragons!**

**Aww yeah! Second chapter completed! Are you enjoying the story so far? Anyone even reading it? Lol! Leave a review so I know that A: someone's actually reading this story, and B: What you like/dislike about the story, my writing style, or whatever. Until next time!**


	3. Chapter 3: Here there be Dragons!

**Chapter 3: Here There Be Dragons!**

**Kilvakar here! I'm excited, I got my first review on the story so far! Glad to see that someone likes it :) Well, here goes nothing, enjoy!**

**Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima.**

_Late in the afternoon, Team Natsu sails east toward the setting sun. They are on their way to defeat a fearsome sea monster that has been terrorizing the seaside fishing village of Cocoplum. Everyone's spirits are high, and so is their anticipation. Everyone, that is, except Natsu Dragneel..._

Natsu leaned over the side of the boat and heaved loudly as he hurled up what little remained in his stomach. With his extreme motion sickness, the long boat ride had been very hard on him. Happy tried to comfort his friend the best way he knew how...

"It's ok, Natsu. Soon we'll find that sea monster and we'll cook him up and eat him!"

"Uugh, Happy, this isn't the best time to be talking about food, you know..." the miserable Natsu replied.

"But just think of how yummy it'll be! All fried up in sesame oil, or grilled with leeks and peppers! Or maybe we can slice it up raw and make sashimi out of it!"

"Bleecchh!" was the only sound that came from Natsu in response.

"Don't you think you're being a little too cruel, Happy?" asked Lucy.

"Man, you're totally hopeless" was Grey's response to Natsu's suffering. "Once we find that thing, you're going to be completely useless."

"That's ok, I'll just fly him up off the boat and he should perk right up!" Happy stated.

"If that's the case," Lucy asked, "why aren't you carrying him now?"

"I've got to save my energy. I can't fly forever, you know!"

Erza, who was at the helm, interrupted in a more serious tone of voice. "Be on guard, everyone. We're nearing the part of the sea where Elias said we'd find the monster."

Everyone (except Natsu) instinctively looked out at the wide expanse of ocean, half expecting to see some sign of the beast already. But the water was quite calm. Lucy thought to herself as the boat bobbed up and down rhythmically on the waves.

_"Everything's so peaceful, it's hard to believe that we're on a dangerous mission. And the sun's close to setting, it looks so pretty on the horizon like that. I wonder if sailors ever get tired of this?"_

Lucy's peaceful thoughts were interrupted once again by Erza.

"Look, over there!" she called out. "Something's coming..."

Even Natsu looked up from the railing to see what Erza was pointing at. In the distance a large wake was visible, and it was heading straight for them!

"Damn!" exclaimed Gray. "Whatever that is, it's big. And it's moving fast!"

"And it's heading this way!" added Lucy.

"Everyone get ready." Erza said in a commanding tone as she requipped into her black wing armor.

"Aye sir!" Happy shouted.

Within a few moments, the wake was upon them. However, it dissipated before making impact with the boat.

"It's diving!" Happy called out.

"Alright beast, show yourself!" Erza yelled in challenge.

"Do we really want to antagonize it?" Lucy asked nervously.

They waited anxiously for the monster to appear. For a moment, there was complete silence. Then, the seas erupted into a boiling fury as the beast exploded up from beneath them. To everyone's surprise, it looked like a dragon! It's neck and head towered above the boat, and it spread an enormous pair of watery wings, sending a shower of salty spray down onto the deck. It opened up it's mouth and let loose an ear-splitting roar.

"Everyone, attack now" Erza shouted as she leapt into the air with her sword raised.

"Right!" Lucy called back as she pulled out one of her keys. "Open, Gate of the Archer! Sagittarius!"

"Horse power!" the Celestial Spirit shouted as he appeared from the magic circle. "Well howdy do, little lady! How can I be of service today?"

"You can start by turning that thing into a pin-cushion!"

"Consider it done!" he replied as he drew his bow. Sagittarius fired a rapid volley of arrows at the sea monster, but the arrows went clean through it's body, without any apparent damage. Both Sagittarius and Lucy's mouths gaped in shock.

Erza flew through the air straight towards the monster's head. It roared and lunged at her with gaping jaws. Erza spun sideways, narrowly avoiding it's deadly-looking teeth. She dove forward and slashed at it's neck. But just like Sagittarius' arrows, her sword had no effect. She yelled out a warning to her teammates. "It looks like it's body is made of water! Weapons won't have any effect on it!"

"Is that so?" replied Gray. He placed his right fist over his left palm in the traditional Maker Magic stance. "Well, let's see how you like this! Ice-Make: Ice Geyser!"

A tower of ice spikes burst up from the deck in front of Gray. This time, there was a definite effect on the sea monster. The spikes struck it head-on, and the ice expanded as it began to freeze the monster's body. It thrashed about violently as it tried to escape the effects of Gray's magic. Gray poured more of his magic energy into the attack, and the tower of ice continued to expand. The monster's struggling subsided as it's body froze solid. Erza flew back down towards the boat, and slashed the beast again. This time, it's frozen body cracked and then began to shatter. Lucy and Happy cheered, but then began to scream as they realized that the whole thing, the frozen monster and Gray's ice geyser, was falling toward the deck! The gigantic mass of ice hit the fishing boat. smashing through the railing and snapping the mainmast in half. Natsu, Gray, Lucy, and Sagittarius were thrown from the boat as it lurched sideways. Erza quickly requipped her swimsuit and dove into the water after her friends.

The boat nearly capsized, but righted itself at the last moment. Erza's head broke the water first, she was holding up Lucy. Gray held a still-seasick Natsu's head above water, while Happy floated above them.

"Is everyone alright?" Erza asked.

"I'm fine, you can let go of me." Lucy replied.

"I'm ok." Gray called out.

"How's Natsu doing?" Happy asked, concerned for his friend.

"He's fine." Gray answered. "But remind me why we took him on a job that required sailing?"

"Shut up, Popsicle!" Natsu retorted, already recovering from the motion sickness.

"Uh, guys?" came Lucy's nervous voice. "There's still something in the water..."

Lucy was right. Another wake passed between them, pushing Erza and Lucy away from Natsu and Gray.

"How could that be?" shouted Gray. "We completely crushed that thing!"

"Well, I guess we'll have to give it another pounding!" said Natsu. And with that, the Dragon Slayer dove under the waves, followed by Gray, Erza and Lucy. Happy hung back, being a cat, he never liked being underwater very much.

The four wizards held their breath and looked around. Lucy almost yelled, but stopped herself before she lost her air. She waved and pointed, and her teammates looked in the direction she was pointing. Everyone nearly lost their breath when they saw not a monster, but a boy swimming toward them at an incredible speed. He looked young, maybe Erza's age, and had blue hair that would probably have reached just below his cheeks if it wasn't flowing in random directions from being underwater. He also wore mostly blue clothing. His sleeveless, high-collared jacket reminded them of Gajeel's usual clothing. But he also wore an extremely long blue scarf, probably twice the size of Natsu's. His hands and arms were covered by gloves that reached nearly up to his shoulders, and a sword with a giant pearl pommel stone hung from a belt at his waist. Unlike Team Natsu, he didn't seem to be holding his breath.

_"A water wizard," _Erza thought as she took in the situation. _"So, that creature we fought was probably just a construct...is he the one behind the attacks on the fishermen from Cocoplum?"_

The stranger glared at them and spoke. Despite being submerged, his words were clear as if they were standing on dry land.

"Why can't you people just leave us alone?" he asked in a voice heavy with resignation. "Go away now, and I won't hurt you."

Unable to reply, Erza raised her sword. If he was the one responsible for the attacks on the fishermen, they weren't going to be deterred so easily.

Natsu was excited. This guy looked like he might be a strong opponent. Despite the fact that his Fire Dragon Slayer magic wouldn't work underwater, he raised his fists.

Gray molded a trident out of ice and prepared to attack.

Lucy reached for her keys. Sagittarius had already gone back to the Celestial Spirit world, and this seemed like a perfect time to summon Aquarius.

The stranger looked disappointed as they all took their battle stances. "Very well then," he sighed. "I don't want to hurt you, but you leave me no choice!" he opened his mouth and started sucking in water.

Natsu, Erza, Gray and Lucy all looked at him in shock!

_"It can't be..."_ thought Erza.

_"No way!" _was Gray's first thought.

_"Is he...eating water!?"_ Lucy mentally exclaimed.

Natsu's eye widened. _"Is he a..."_ but his thoughts were interrupted as the stranger shouted out;

"Water Dragon...ROAAARRRR!"

A massive torrent of water erupted from his mouth, and hit the Fairy Tail wizards before they could react. Natsu and Lucy were flung back and slammed into the side of the boat. Erza and Gray were launched out of the water and went sailing through the air. Erza reached out and grabbed one of the rigging lines on their boat to stop their fall, and managed to drop down to the deck with no injury to herself. Gray shouted out "Ice-Make: Grappling Hook!" and fired a hook of ice into the side of the boat. He pulled on the chain and directed himself back down to the deck as well. Happy dashed through the air to Gray and Erza and called out worriedly.

"Erza, Gray! What happened? Are Natsu and Lucy ok?"

Gray didn't respond, he pulled off his shirt and dove back into the water. Erza requipped into her swimsuit and dove in after him. A few moments later, they both resurfaced. Erza held Natsu's head above water, while Gray did the same for Lucy.

"Get us back on the boat, Happy!" Gray called out.

"Aye sir!" Happy answered as he flew down and began carrying them all back on deck one at a time.

Once they were all on board, Erza requipped her Sea Empress armor, expecting another attack at any moment. As she looked back out over the water, she saw a wake, but it was headed away from them, not towards them. She inwardly sighed with relief. Natsu and Lucy were both unconscious from their impact with the hull of the boat, and she knew that they would be at a distinct disadvantage trying to fight that type of enemy in the water.

"Looks like they're both ok." Gray reported after checking on Natsu and Lucy. As if on command, Natsu bolted up and started shouting.

"Alright, where is he!? I'll teach that guy to hit us with a cheap shot like that!"

"Calm down Natsu." said Happy." That guy's long gone, he headed off further east.

"Aw man, that coward! Why wouldn't he stick around and fight?"

"He probably realized that we outnumbered him and decided to run while he had the advantage." Gray replied.

"No, that's not it." Erza stated. "That man is a Dragon Slayer, the Water Dragon Slayer, it would seem. He had the advantage, a surprise attack, the ability to move freely underwater, an unlimited supply of his element to consume..."

"Then why would he run away like that?" Natsu asked.

"Because I get the feeling he didn't want to fight us in the first place. I think he was just trying to scare us off with that imitation dragon of his earlier, and remember, he said he didn't want to hurt us."

"Well, if he's such a nice guy, then why has he been attacking the fishing boats?"

"That I don't know. But I do know that he headed out further to sea, he must have some sort of home base out there. While the facts surrounding our mission have changed, we still have to find out why that man has been threatening the fishermen from Cocoplum."

"That's fine with me!" said Natsu with a look of anticipation in his eye. "There's no doubt about it, that guy's a Dragon Slayer like me! If he's going to disgrace the Dragon Slayer name like that, then I've got no problem taking him down. I'm all fired up now!"

"Right." said Erza. "Let's see what we can do to get this boat repaired. We have a job to do!"

"I'm on it." Gray responded. "Erza, can you get that mast held back in position?"

Erza requipped into her Giant's Armor. She grabbed the broken mast and lifted it into the air, and held it back in place. Gray placed his hands on the mast and a thick coating of ice started to form around it. Soon, the entire lower half of the mast was frozen in place.

"That ought to hold it, for now." Gray said with satisfaction.

"Very good." Erza replied. "Let's get going!"

**You knew that was coming, right? I mean, the story is called "Rise of the Water Dragon," after all :) Well, I know that Dragon Slayer OCs are about as common as flying cats in the Fairy Tail fanfiction world, but trust me, this guy's not some ridiculously over-powered self-insert character. I hope you'll read on as the plot thickens and Team Natsu is about to be challenged like they've never expected!**


End file.
